MOUNT PLEASANT, Iowa (AP) - A southeast Iowa jury has awarded seven former nursing students of Iowa Wesleyan University in Mount Pleasant $75,000 each after the nursing program lost national accreditation just prior to their graduation in the spring of 2013.

The students filed a lawsuit with several allegations including breach of contract and negligence. They said damages included the inability to enter a chosen graduate school program as a result of graduating from a non-accredited nursing program and loss of earning capacity.

A Henry County jury returned the verdict on Wednesday.

Attorneys for the university say the situation was disappointing for all involved and Iowa Wesleyan will work with its insurance providers to pay the judgment. They say the nursing program is now nationally accredited and continues to provide a high quality nursing education.